


The Half Prince

by A_bello



Category: Hannibal (TV)
Genre: AU, Aftercare, Angst With A Side of Angst, Angst and Fluff, Dark Will Graham, Emotional Manipulation, F/M, Fantasy AU, Fluff, Frederick is like an older brother to Will, Half-Human Will, Hannibal takes care of Will a lot, Hannigram - Freeform, Healer/Doctor Hannibal, King Frederick Chilton, M/M, Medieval AU, Multi, Murder Husbands, Mystical Will Graham, Prince Will Graham, Seer Hannibal Lecter, Smut, Will is a Mess, Will is like a lab rat to Frederick, angst with no comfort, darker themes, how do i do tags, long fic, momentary Hannibal/Bedelia, slowburn, wanted murderer/criminal Hannibal
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-08
Updated: 2020-08-08
Packaged: 2021-03-05 00:47:49
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,146
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25461925
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/A_bello/pseuds/A_bello
Summary: He climbed into the bed, across the thick blanket, under it to mingle with the silk sheets. Will didn't fancy the sleek bedding, but it was what he was given, and he was the least picky man one could know. These luxuries, he felt, were not meant for him and him alone. He didn't want them for himself, even if he could enjoy them while he had them.((Character Introduction, Will Graham reluctantly prepares for a trip through the land King Frederick rules over as a way to get out of the castle.
Relationships: Alana Bloom/Will Graham/Hannibal Lecter, Bedelia Du Maurier/Hannibal Lecter, Will Graham/Hannibal Lecter
Comments: 4
Kudos: 10





	1. In The Morrow

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He climbed into the bed, across the thick blanket, under it to mingle with the silk sheets. Will didn't fancy the sleek bedding, but it was what he was given, and he was the least picky man one could know. These luxuries, he felt, were not meant for him and him alone. He didn't want them for himself, even if he could enjoy them while he had them.   
> ((Character Introduction, Will Graham reluctantly prepares for a trip through the land King Frederick rules over as a way to get out of the castle.

William Graham stood in the middle of the extremely large throne room. He could’ve been alone-he honestly wished he were-had the two guards standing separately in specific doorways not decided to accompany him to one of the rooms on the path of his daily brooding routine. He sighed, not even sparing the two indifferent guardsmen a second glance. He turned around, deciding to focus his attention back on his own thought process. He stared at the two thrones, side by side, with renewed anxiety-Will’s birthday was around the corner, and he’d be 25. He still had no Queen, and King Frederick therefore felt it’d be pointless to retire the kingdom to Will. The man never knew when to quit, especially when it came to his work ethic and the control he had over the kingdom.  
Will crossed his arms. When would Will find his own queen, so that Frederick could finally relax? Did he even want to be king, or did he simply feel a special sense of obligation due to all the man has done for him, which Will could use to mimic Frederick’s expectations of how he would feel about his soon-to-be role in the kingdom. Should he make that jump? All for the King?  
He wasn’t sure.

Will was dressed lightly; a coarse white blouse, open until about the middle of his chest, past his collarbone, tucked into dark leather pants that came to about mid-calf to meet a pair of thin stockings and worn boots. This suited him and how he preferred to be dressed, even if it was a genuinely light outfit for the man. The average King’s attire was always fairly layered, and fruitful in consideration of accessories. Just the thought of the chore of simply getting dressed in the morning made his shoulders slouch and his knees ache. If he couldn’t even bear the thought of the uniform, how was he supposed to make peace with the responsibilities and reputation of being King? Will didn’t want so much in life.  
He most definitely wished he could have the simple gift of solitude, though, he thought with a heavy inhale.  
  
Jack Crawford, head of his personal guard, entered the room. He cleared his throat, standing about 6 feet behind Will. Will turned his head and looked over his shoulder with a tired gaze and a sigh more dramatic than the best Jester in all the land could muster.  
“Hello, Jack.” He finally said, turning to face the burly man all the way. He received a nod as a greeting.  
“King Frederick has given me a message for you,” Jack paused momentarily, “he wants the guard to accompany you on a two-week long excursion to get you out of the castle and, more importantly, back into the view of the public. We leave at first light” he stated, not giving the prince much time to process the sudden information. Will rubbed a hand over his face, exhaling shortly out his nose. Jack continued, “You returned many moons ago, Will. You know we don’t have a choice here.”  
“I’m aware.”  
Jack stared him down a moment, trying to decipher the sass and tiredness in the prince’s voice.  
“Good. Alana will assist you in packing your belongings, call her to your quarters when you begin. Don’t wait until the final moment.”  
He warned, before turning on his heel and leaving the great room.  
  
At sunset, Will had finally returned to his chambers, with the request that Alana join him. He pulled clothing from his wardrobe and she folded and compartmentalized it all for him, unreluctantly. While she straightened out a blouse, he watched her, on the edge of curiosity and familiarity. They were rarely in a room alone together, and when they were, she always kept her distance and neutrality. Her presence still comforted him, though.  
Will handed her a pair of trousers. Their fingers barely brushed, but as it happened, her eyes shot away from him. This time, when she stepped away, she also turned her back on him, facing the same direction as Will now. He nearly chuckled, but kept his stoicness intact. With his attention redirected to the task at hand, the tension in his chambers was nearly cut in half-but it wouldn’t last, no, it’d change, because he was holding the last sliver of fabric he’d be bringing on the exhibition. Will closed the doors to the large cupboard and turned, arm out to give away the singlet he held. Alana met his eyes and took it, giving him a smile designed to clear the atmosphere, to give him some false security.  
“Why the solemn face, Will? Are you upset about the journey?”

 _Sure._  
“Not necessarily, though I’ve been more pleased with traveling plans before,” He poked fun at Alana, moving away from her to grab a few more items to add to one of the two large trunks on his bed.  
“That’s understandable”  
Winston, the newest addition to his collection of companions, jumped up onto the stiff bed, tail wagging as he panted in Will’s face. He gave a soft smile, reaching up to pet him nearly glancing over at the collection of cushions on the floor, cluttered with other canines such as Winston. Finally, Will addressed Alana.  
“I am able to carry my own belongings in the morrow.”  
She pondered it before sighing, reaching over and patting Winston’s back.  
“And you plan on upholding that promise?”  
She asked without conviction. She smiled at him momentarily and stepped past the bed, and left the room. Will stared after her, mouth set in a straight line. He knew what time dinner would be served, and that he could get himself there. Winston licked his hands, snapping him out of the daze.

* * *

After the days last meal, Will retired once more to his quarters. He sat on one of the many windowsills, a stone slab large enough for the man to lounge with pillows on, read in the sunlight, watch the rain. He stared upwards into the eyes of the moon itself, eyes heavy, in his underclothes now. Will felt thinly clothed inside his skin, staring into the dark midnight sky, light of the milky circles dotting the sky shining through his windows to give the palest of glows to the space. The prince opened the window a moment, feeling the night breeze push past him, through him, into the walls behind him. Whispering sweet songs and sensual thoughts, burdens and daydreams of horrid things. He blinked slowly, closing the panes of thick glass once more before sliding off the platform, feet feeling the bone-deep chill that seeped from the stone floors, through the thick carpets woven of furs and wool. He climbed into the bed, across the thick blanket, under it to mingle with the silk sheets.

Will didn't fancy the sleek bedding, but it was what he was given, and he was the least picky man one could know. These luxuries, he felt, were not meant for him and him alone. He didn't want them for himself, even if he could enjoy them while he had them. 

His eyes closed as he lay on his back, fingers laced across his gut. The world faded around him, the white noise of his silence both a comfort and a burden as he slipped into a fitful sleep.


	2. Chance Meeting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Will can only lay there, tears stinging his eyes as the bear rose up before him, a mighty thing, the smoke shifting away from his great movements. A moment of awe and gratitude is held in the air before he crashes down onto the man, and Will's body startles awake.  
> _______________________________  
> With a heavy inhale, the Prince met his eyes for only a second, before looking away once more. He nodded, changing his foot placement. His next choice would determine how difficult the rest of the trip would be, and how much grief Frederick would put him through. It wasn’t an easy decision, but he supposed it wouldn’t be final until he spoke, so all the better to just get it over with.  
> “That’s fine, whatever you need to fix me up I suppose.”  
> The man’s smile was revamped, and he took a step towards him, hand falling on Will’s shoulder to steady the clearly dizzy man.  
> “I’m glad. What’s your name?”  
> After a moment of hesitation, the word slipped from between his lips.  
> “Will”  
> A pause, almost, before the taller reciprocated the introduction.  
> “I’m Hannibal.”  
> ((Will gets himself into trouble on the first day of traveling and encounters Hannibal Lecter.

_Will’s eyes opened, eyelids heavy and dry against searing hot air. He snapped into a state of alarm, as he’d like to say, when he took in the flames in front of him. Stumbling sideways, he peered into the blistering mass of heat, watching the sudden burst die out for the most part, red hot sparks littering the ground still. His gaze met milky white eyes, small yet sure of themselves, deep set on the face of a large grizzly bear. The animal was scarred, sightless, but still clearly young, stumbling towards the broken and freshly burned walls of what was a tall old stone temple, bits of live embers still sputtering out along the dead structure, the front wall all but gone to reveal nothing but a wasteland beyond the building. The bear advanced, paws scraping the beginnings of the cobble flooring, and in its wake new life was birthed; blades of grass peeking through the cracks in the blackened, buds of flytraps and ivy. Young poisonous wildlife and weeds trembling with newfound strength in his trail. Butterflies, scattering crows, insects fluttering forth with a profound lack of struggle through the smoke, movements smooth, as if they were swimming through the heavy air._

_Will stumbles back, figure bare, the cobblestone charred and red-hot against the soles of his feet. Flailing rearwards, crashing hard just to writhe in agony on the searing floor, the back of his body now branded as the blind mammal lumbers towards him, wreaking poetic havoc as it draws closer. Will can only lay there, tears stinging his eyes as the bear rose up before him, a mighty thing, the smoke shifting away from his great movements. A moment of awe and gratitude is held in the air before he crashes down onto the man, and Will's body startles awake._

* * *

He regained consciousness with a jolt, body cold with his own sweat. He was swamped with darkness, gasping for breath, disoriented at first, per usual. Jack stood in his doorway across the room, one hand on the handle, the other hanging at his side.

“Will? Are you alright?”  
He questioned, framed with the dim golden light seeping from the aisle that connected to his bedroom. Will assumed he looked nothing short of ghastly at the moment. The prince, unruly bangs plastered across his forehead with moisture, scoffed and sat all the way, rubbing a hand over his face.

“How long until we depart?”

He rasped out to Jack as he turned his body, legs hanging off the great bed, peering out through the large, paned windows at the night sky, speckled with dots of light and fantasy.  
“Three quarters till, so haul ass. Price will be in to gather your dogs and belongings-”  
“I can handle my belongings” Will interrupted. Jack raised an eyebrow.  
“I have no objection to that, but he’ll still be grabbing one of your trunks.”

With that, the open door was closed, and William was enveloped in the dark once more. He stood, momentarily stalled with vertigo as he began to light a few candles and dress himself. By the time Jimmy arrived, his dogs and their own belongings were gathered and waiting. Will was wearing an outfit similar to the previous day’s, holding one of the large trunks, the other leaning against his leg in waiting.  
“Are you primed and ready, your Royal Highness?”  
“Will,” He corrected, tiredly, glancing back at the windows through which he could see the sky slowly paling. Lifting the second trunk just barely off the floor to announce its presence with a sigh, he watched Price move forwards to grab the trunk before pushing past the servant, leaving the man to take care of the canines as well. Through the corridors, down the moist stairwells, weaving between the shadows between the groups of candles throughout the structure, Will felt like a ghost, moving down the halls of a manor he’d never owned.  
Sweat had pooled in the small of his back, and Will’s forearms burned, but he’d much rather struggle through the hallways than not lift so much as a finger to help while other people took care of him and belongings.

Once he reached the gates of the courtyard, he took a deep breath, swamped with relief when one of the attendants took the case from his grasp to load it. The neutral toned carriage before him was clearly for traveling and not at all for show, even with the royal family's emblem engraved into the door. Moving over to the wagon whilst his first trunk got strapped into the luggage compartment of it, he hoisted himself up into the small space, settling to face the opposite direction as the chauffeur, who perched on the outside of the wagon.  
His eyes met Fredericks, and the King gave him a curious look, the door slamming shut as Will settled.

“Rough night, William?”  
  
He teased, smiling-though not with happiness or kindness behind his expression, but rather with a much darker emotion, like a cat waiting atop a table to pounce on the mouse that had been scuttering about all morning. Will reciprocated the grin.  
“Aren’t all nights the same, here?”  
The man adorned in furs shrugged, glancing out the window while someone gestured that they would be taking leave.  
“It depends on your perspective”  
“Is a perspective nothing more than a shaded version of the truth?”  
Frederick hummed, leaving it at that, to which Will was grateful for. The prince favored his attention for the window to his left, which showed the village landscape, and the brightening hills of green and woodland ahead of it. The hansom lurched with each crooked cobblestone. He wasn’t sure how he’d failed to realize they’d begun to move in the midst of their conversation, but it didn’t matter enough to figure out. 

As they were pulled along, his eyelids dropped, and before him or the King knew it, Will had drifted into a light sleep.

* * *

When he regained consciousness, his neck was stiff, and warm light lay across his features. Will stretched, bones cracking, bladder shifting. His cabin mate responded to his grunt with a small chuckle.  
“Did you enjoy your slumber? You’ve been sleeping for over 5 hours.”  
  
Startled, Will sat up straighter, blinking a few times. Five hours? Will hadn’t been as well rested as he thought. No matter, he supposed; he’d rather spend his time with Frederick not conscious, anyways.  
“Could we hinder the trip for a short while? Nature calls.”  
With a snort and a shout from the King, the whole traveling group had come to a halt at the side of the path. Two guards began to let the dogs out of one of the other carriages as Will climbed out of his own. Another guard began to walk with him, but he stopped them, annoyance playing across his features.  
  


“I can handle relieving myself without any assistance, thank you.”  
He reassured, sarcasm dripping from his tongue. Finally alone, he walked out of sight and then a little farther, until he could barely hear the barks of the dogs and the chatter amongst his crew. Will found a lonely tree and untied a pouch from his waist, then opened the flap in the front of his pants, taking the time to close his eyes and listen to the wildlife around him, shut out the rest of his senses for a moment. Minutes later, whilst retucking his blouse, the undergrowth crackled behind him before he felt someone leap onto his back, knocking him forwards to the ground.  
They struggled for a solid few seconds, hands flying across his torso and at the drawstring around his pants until Will could finally lift himself enough to throw the being off his ass. He scrambled to his feet quickly, panting, all the while holding eye contact with the fiery haired woman. An elf? He scoffed, straightening slightly. A goddamn elf was somehow the same height as him, and to top it all off, she was a thief.  
  
“What are you, the runt?”  
  
She lunged at him, a snarl twisting across her face as she grabbed at the already loose pouch around his hips. They wrestled, scratching and pushing, before he rolled them over, pinning her to the ground. After a few seconds of her struggling, he opened his mouth to ask a more serious question, when a blinding pain and a loud thud was enough to make him grasp at his temple and roll off her, yelping. A thump on the undergrowth when she dropped the rock and climbed to her knees, leaning for him, just before she herself was tackled, red hair flashing beneath the hands of the newcomer as they both flew over Will’s body. A heavy tangle of limbs landed on the opposite side of him, and she clawed and yelled at the larger man. Will crawled backwards, blood warm as it flowed slowly through his fingers, into his palm, down the side of his face. 

The man ripped her satchel from her shoulder, straddling her while he dug through it. She clawed his arms, legs, but he didn’t falter until he pulled out a few pieces of fine silverware. Dropping the purse, pushing up and off of her, and sliding the few recovered items into a pocket, he sighed, stepping away.  
“Freddie, you’ve got to stop stealing. From me, at the most.” He said, a thick accent coating his words like powdered sugar on pancakes. “It’s terribly rude.”  
His eyes turned to Will, neatly tucking strands of carmel hair out of his face as the woman lightly cursed him out, getting up and limping as she hurried away into the shrubbery surrounding the two men.

“That looks like it hurts. Does it?”  
The man before him questioned, gazing down at the prince, practically sprawled out on the ground.  
Will sat up further, elbows dirtied, blood dripping onto his white top, dark curls matted with blood against the side of his head. He pulled his hand away to look at the wet maroon liquid on it, wincing at the sudden rush of air against the wound.  
“I’m not entirely sure.”  
The other’s eyebrows quirked upwards with a slight grin.  
“I can offer you salvation from that confusion, if not pain, if you’d like. I’m a skilled healer.”  
Will shifted, squeezing his eyes shut, standing to his feet whilst the other man continued.  
“We’d have to go back to my mill, though.”  
  
With a heavy inhale, the Prince met his eyes for only a second, before looking away once more. He nodded, changing his foot placement. His next choice would determine how difficult the rest of the trip would be, and how much grief Frederick would put him through. It wasn’t an easy decision, but he supposed it wouldn’t be final until he spoke, so all the better to just get it over with.  
“That’s fine, whatever you need to fix me up I suppose.”  
The man’s smile was revamped, and he took a step towards him, hand falling on Will’s shoulder to steady the clearly dizzy man.  
“I’m glad. What’s your name?”  
After a moment of hesitation, the word slipped from between his lips.  
“Will”  
A pause, almost, before the taller reciprocated the introduction.  
“I’m Hannibal.”  
  
With a shake of his head, he led Will into the woods, stomping through the undergrowth until they came to a path that, far behind them, intertwined with another path at the crossroads where travelers grew antsy in wait for the Prince to return.


End file.
